Note: This recipe originally came with an egg. One morning I didn't have an egg and it came out just fine. In fact I didn't even notice a difference. An egg would add a bit of richness and perhaps a bit of life (though these get plenty of life even without), so feel free to include one, but I usually don't.

Combine dry ingredients. Add milk and whisk together. Do not get the batter completely smooth. There should be a few lumps. Why? The more you mix wheat, the more the gluten organizes itself and sort of lines up (how's that for a scientific expanation), thus becoming stretchy and chewy. That's great for yeasty breads, but it will make your pancakes and quick breads tough and elastic-y. Overstirring will also release the bubbles from the baking soda too quickly, meaning you will have less to make your pancakes nice and fluffy. If you want a light fluffy pancake, do not over mix.

Put butter or oil in a pan and cook on medium or medium low. (Your pancakes should not cook so fast that they're burning before the middles are done and they should not take forever to get golden on one side.) I hate to say this, but you'll probably have to experiment with your stove in order to figure out your right temperature. I have not found any hard and fast rule that always works (such as 'when the bubbles are popping, it's time'. It might be time, but then, if you're stove is too hot, you might have burned the pancakes by the time the bubbles get to doing their thing.) The good news is that it should only take a pancake or three before you're getting the swing of things.

Tip: Pancakes can be kept warm on a cookie sheet in an oven set at 200 degrees for up to an hour.